The Convenience of Same Day Crowns
There’s nothing quite as disappointing as cracking or damaging a tooth and realizing that you’re not only going to have to deal with discomfort, but you’ll also need to take time out of your busy schedule to get a crown placed.
If it’s been a while since your last crown, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn that same day crowns are now widely available and make the process of getting a crown much more efficient. Thanks to the in-office E4D Dentist system, dentists are able to create beautiful, custom crowns in a single visit rather than leaving you with a temporary crown and the two- to four- week wait common with traditional crowns.
Here are 5 big reasons why you’re going to love the benefits of a same day crown.
1. Same day crowns will save you time.
Same day crowns are a huge time saver!
When receiving a same day crown, tooth preparation, crown fabrication, and placement are all done in just one visit. Compare that to lab-created crowns that require two appointments and often a few weeks of waiting, and you’ll see why patients almost always prefer the same day crown option.
Same day crowns save you from the hassle of coordinating a second dental visit to fit your busy schedule, not to mention dealing with a temporary crown. Consider the possibility for temporary crowns to come loose, which requires yet another appointment, and you’ll really understand why a single visit is so advantageous.
Your appointment time will also be shorter. After taking digital impressions, the actual “mill time” (creation of your crown) can be as quick as half an hour or less, depending on the tooth.
2. Same day crowns will save you money.
Fewer appointments mean more money saved as a patient.
While there usually isn’t a significant difference between the cost of a same day versus a traditional crown itself, there are other related costs you need to think about. These include office co-pay costs, anesthesia costs, gas money for travel, time off work, and a number of other factors. While dentists typically won’t charge for temporary crowns or emergency visits to mend loose ones, you’ll still need to spend money on travel and as well any other accommodations to make it to your appointment.
A single appointment for a same day crown will end up being less expensive than a traditional crown, even if your procedure goes flawlessly and you never have issues with a loose temporary.
3. Same day crowns eliminate the need for temporaries.
Same day crowns let you avoid the hassle of a temporary crown.
Temporary crowns are a necessary part of getting a traditional crown. Wearing a temporary between restoration procedures is crucial in protecting the tooth and maintaining spacing/alignment while you wait for your permanent one. Unfortunately, these temporary crowns can have their own issues.
Temporary crowns don’t look as good as a permanent crown, which can be a source of embarrassment if the tooth being fixed is a front tooth and easily visible. Temporary crowns can also feel uncomfortable and make it difficult to chew or talk as they don’t fit as precisely as a finished crown. Worse yet, they can even come loose before your next appointment, requiring another visit to have it placed back.
It’s also possible for gum tissue to grow around the temporary crown while you wait for your permanent, which will lead to soreness and discomfort—especially when your permanent crown is being placed.
Overall, temporary crowns can be an annoyance, and you can avoid dealing with them by opting for same day crowns.
4. Same day crowns offer a precise fit.
Same day crowns offer just as precise a fit as traditional crowns, in less time and with reduced discomfort.
The process of getting an impression done the traditional way involves putty, which creates a cast of the tooth being treated. This process isn’t painful, but it can be a bit uncomfortable, especially if your tooth and jaw are already feeling sore. Same-day crowns created with E4D technology instead rely on accurate digital scans to get measurements, which are taken with a special intraoral camera. The intraoral camera gets measurements faster and saves you from the uncomfortable feeling of putty in your mouth.
Thanks to this technology, your same day crown will have a nearly perfect fit. Digital impressions also allow for dentists to create same day crowns that are just as durable as traditional crowns, but with thinner material. This helps with getting a precise fit that won’t interfere with surrounding teeth or your gum line, plus it will allow your dentist to leave more healthy, natural tooth than would have been possible with a traditional crown.
5. Same day crowns seamlessly match your other teeth.
Same day crowns look flawless and natural, blending in with your smile.
Same day crowns are made of a very strong ceramic material that also looks and feels like your natural tooth. It’s also important to note that same day ceramic crowns do not have that characteristic, odd gray line along the gum line, which is seen with PMF or porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns.
Your dentist will be able to create a same day crown that matches not only the color and shading of your existing teeth but even the translucency. Traditional crowns can come out looking natural, but it tends to be harder for a lab tech to get an accurate color as they’ll be relying on pictures rather than being able to look at your teeth with their own eyes.
Consider same day crowns for your smile.
There are a number of advantages to getting a same day crown, but for many patients, the greatest benefit is time savings. With the entirety of the crown procedure—from tooth prep to fabrication and permanent placement—being done in a single appointment, it’s easy to see why it’s a favored option compared to traditional crowns.
That being said, traditional crowns aren’t a bad option, they just have different advantages and disadvantages. In fact, many dentists with same day crown technology in their office will still offer traditional crowns under certain circumstances where traditional crowns may be more appropriate for a particular patient.
If you’re considering a same day crown and would like to learn more, schedule an appointment with Dr. Lang for an evaluation.